


Feathers

by windmillKey



Category: Fire Emblem Echoes: Mou Hitori no Eiyuu Ou | Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-20 14:24:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13148529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/windmillKey/pseuds/windmillKey
Summary: Two mages strike a lasting friendship over time.





	Feathers

**Author's Note:**

> a gift fic for nohrdragonprince.tumblr.com

 

The two sat in companionable silence, Leo lounging in a plush chaise longue and Kliff sat with his back up against it. Both held in his own lap a thick tome, and for some time the only sound they produced was that of pages being delicately turned.

They had for the purpose of today’s visit opted for Leo’s study. The better part of the area surrounding them lay in impeccable order, pristine and everything in its place… everything except for the mess atop the table right next to them, which could only be described as organized chaos. They, of course, would know where everything was and how to find what they were after.

Finally, after what to some might have felt an eternity, Kliff reached for a piece of paper - one of many they had ready to use as bookmarks - and, albeit briefly, breached the silence:

“Interesting passage here about a root hoshidan and nohrian magics potentially share.”

Leo had looked over, attentive, and nodded. The two shared a quiet smile and returned to their research. It was a ritual they’d come to count on. At least once a month, Kliff would return to the nohrian capital and they would exchange their findings. On the rare occasion or two, they’d meet elsewhere. Sometimes they’d have tea. Other times they’d wander the courtyard and share in discourse. Infrequently they would even spar, testing what they had learned in a practical setting. Mostly, though, mostly they sat, and they read and shared their findings.

Lately though, a crinkle in his fine brow as he looked over the younger mage, Leo couldn’t help but wonder if there was something he wasn’t sharing.  
  


> **How It Came About.**

After the war, Kliff bid farewell to Alm and the rest of his friends. Then, he vanished.

He had gotten a taste of the adventure he’d long yearned for, but it was only that: a taste. He wanted,  _needed_  more. As nice as it might have been to stay in the newly formed kingdom of Valentia and lend a hand, something in his gut told him he would not find what he was looking for on his home continent.

And so he’d set out, taking with him only what he could fit within the confines of a small backpack.

> * * * * *

The aftermath of the war left Leo with even more of an image to live up to. There was much to be done in terms of helping Xander, now king, with the rebuilding of Nohr in its new image. Undoing the damage done would not happen overnight. Many of the citizens were frustrated with the upheavals their way of life was seeing, and he could not rightly blame them.

They would have to adjust nonetheless.

As he walked the streets of the capital, he stood tall, proud, sharp eyes assessing the morale of the people on this new day. His hand lingered ever near Brynhildr, the tome warm and alive and comforting to the touch, and it lent him just that extra bit of authority should he require it. Already he was deciding what he might put in today’s report to his eldest brother. Food was not as plentiful as it ought to be. There were still scrums in the streets aplenty, and general attitude did not appear to have shifted overmuch.

Then, he felt it. A tap on his shoulder. With a surprised grunt, Leo whirled on his heels to face whoever it was that had the audacity to-

oh. A boy- no, a young man, perhaps. Running a quick visual appraisal, Leo figured he and the stranger might be similar in age. Yet there was something about the pale-haired youth that gave the impression of knowledge beyond his years and the feel of a distant, faraway place… and this, not in the same sense that a visiting Hoshidan (rare though they still were) might come across as foreign, or even anyone from Cyrkensia, or… or…

Lips drawn taut in the midst of his speculation, Leo’s lithe brows lifted in question. “Can I help you?”

The stranger, with his inscrutable, distinct crimson gaze, seemed to start at the query. He glanced away, rubbing idly at the nape of his neck. “I was just, hm, wondering if you were aware your collar was inside out.”

The effect was immediate. Leo’s cheeks flushed for an instant the colour of the tomatoes he was so very fond of. “Beg pardon?” _No, no, no… How?_  He thought he had long left that careless habit behind. He’d long had enough of his siblings’ teasing him for it and had actively sought to do something about it. So much for that.

“Your collar,” the white-haired youth repeated simply, his stare even and distant, as though this were really no big deal.

And… It wasn’t, Leo realized, annoying though it was. To his credit, a testament to his character, he bounced back remarkably fast. Tugging on the collar, he huffed, flipped it deftly around, and stood tall. “You have my gratitude.” He inclined his head, and took that moment to further discretely study the newcomer, eyes surreptitiously narrowed in consideration.

No way the guy was from around here. From his dress to his manner… As the boy shrugged, nodded, and then turned to leave, Leo called after him. His instincts were after him not to leave the encounter at that, and who was he to ignore them?

“Wait!”

The boy turned and pinned that piercing, always searching stare of his on Leo. Undeterred, the prince pressed on. “What is your name?”

The boy tugged idly at his own collar, a furrow developing in his brow. Clearly, Leo remarked privately, he was not the only one who’d been studying the other. “Kliff,” he said simply, affecting a second indifferent shrug before making to turn away anew. Not the sociable type, huh? Leo knew someone a little like that.

“Well met, Kliff.” Leo had jogged a few steps to catch up and now walked abreast of the pale youth. If he really was a foreigner, then his opinion of the land might prove invaluable insofar as gauging how Nohr was progressing. He flashed the boy a ghost of a smile, just enough to show he meant no harm, but also enough to hint that he was far from done with Kliff’s time. Kliff, for his part, appeared coolly resigned. His detachment was hardly enough to deter the prince. “From whence do you hail?”

“Far away.”

Leo quirked now only a single brow. Cryptic. “Far away?” he echoed in challenge, bristling slightly despite himself as he easily matched the other’s pace.

Kliff met him with a wry smile. “Who is a man to pry without even so much as giving a name of his own? I wonder.”

Blinking back his surprise, Leo quietly grit his teeth before nodding in acknowledgement. “You’ve got me there. Forgive me. I’ll admit I may have gotten ahead of myself.”

The white-haired boy chuckled dryly, as though to say, ’ _may_?’

“I am Leo, a prince of Nohr. My people are my primary concern, but foreign relations factor amongst my duties. I did not intend to pry for the mere sake of prying. You’ve no need to humour me, however I-”

“-Good.”

Of all the nerve! Few and far between were those who who dared cut Leo off. The impertinence! The gall! The-

“…Because,” Kliff continued, his smirk lacking malevolence but betraying his amusement all the same, “it’s a bit of a long story, and I will admit I had no intent on sharing it. But…” The white-haired boy’s stomach rumbled. He frowned in thought. “…I suppose I could be swayed.” Leo perked up. He had a feeling he knew where this was headed. “If you want more,” Kliff continued, “the least you could do is treat me to lunch.”

_Bingo._

> * * * * * 

Kliff stirred his nearly empty cup of tea absently, his gaze lingering past the window to his right. It was a song and dance he’d not performed overmuch despite the extent of his travels and the number of people he’d met along the way. Try though he might, opening up remained difficult. None of the individuals he’d met could ever replace his Ram Village gang and, logically speaking, that was fine. He wasn’t out to replace them. That’d be impossible. Still, he had to admit: a small part of him missed home. Or, more specifically, missed the people there.

Leo had skillfully coaxed from him not only where he came from but also the history of the events prior to and surrounding his departure. It helped that something about the guy felt oddly familiar. The tome at his waist certainly did him favours - though mages back home did not require the use of them, Kliff had long ago learned that this was not the case for most outside of Valentia. A fellow mage… And then there was his demeanour, too. Perhaps a bit easily frazzled concerning certain things but oh so quick to recoup his composure, and Kliff was already more than willing to bet he’d stand impervious when it really counted.

Of course, maybe he was completely wrong about that. Only time would tell, and he wasn’t likely to stick around, so, it didn’t matter, not really, and-

“You all right?” Leo questioned, taking a ginger sip of his own drink.

“Hm? Yeah. Just fine.” Right. The blonde had posed a question, and he was supposed to be thinking about it. Whoops. “I decided fairly young that I wanted to go into magic. Just… something about it. I can’t explain.” Bless Sir Mycen, he’d excelled where it came to teaching them about physical combat and even a little where tactics against magic were concerned, but where the use of the art itself came into play… Kliff had had to rely on the few tomes of information he could scrounge up and on experimentation. Painful experimentation, more often than not, at that. “But they couldn’t keep me away from the books if they tried.”

As he spoke, he could see the telltale glint of interest in Leo’s eyes. A fellow mage, indeed. How oh so utterly exciting. Kliff frowned, cupping his tea and pointedly staring into it. “And what brought you to magic, then?” He didn’t look up, not yet.

The prince did not even have to pause to consider his words. “Much the same! A certain _je-ne-sais-quoi_  attracted me to it from a young age. The feeling of raw power flowing through your veins, at your command… If anything, it was not so much that I chose the path of magic, but more so that it chose me.”

Kliff nodded in understanding. He could relate. Looking up at last, he found himself suppressing a sigh. He was being studied again. And with the blonde’s knit brow, with how he did not bother hiding his puzzlement, Kliff felt he knew what was coming next.

“You are a mage,”  _ah, there it was, alongside subtle undertones of mixed suspicion and curiosity_ , “but wear no tome? What’s your specialty?”

Kliff smirked but glanced away again, suddenly weary of this whole inquisition. His fingers drummed lightly, silently against the table. Insatiable curiosity to match his own had always been a bit daunting. And didn’t this prince have better things to do?

Ah. Speaking of.

“Y-your highness!” A messenger had run up and, slightly out of breath, was stuck a moment leaning over his knees, panting for want of air. Then, at once, the man sprang up straight, offered a too-official salute, and got to business. “Your presence is requested three blocks south. A tussle has broken out over the new taxes and-”

“-say no more.” Leo had already risen to his feet. “I apologize for cutting our meeting short,” he offered Kliff. “Thank you for answering my questions. I would love to learn more about you and the land you hail from, but duty calls.”

Kliff shrugged and grinned weakly. “Know how that goes.” Alm had always followed that same call of duty, after all. He’d proven himself fit to lead long before he ever wore any crown.

“Perhaps fate shall guide us to another meeting. ‘Til then.” With a curt nod to punctuate his words, Leo exited, and was promptly followed by the messenger. He was asking something about a mount before Kliff could no longer hear them. Brows lifted skeptically, Kliff reached over for the rest of the tea in the nearby pot. Waste not, want not.

Maybe they would indeed meet again some day, he mused. He wouldn’t be fussed if not but, in truth, the guy really hadn’t been that bad.

> * * * * *

Leo reached forward and patted his horse’s neck. All around him were trees in bloom, pink petals drifting peacefully unto the earth. Straightening his posture, he pulled one of the petals from his hair and observed it a moment in the palm of his hand. It reminded him of that demure, pink-haired hoshidan noble. Had she not been named after these particular trees? Maybe, he mused idly, she would be present at the forthcoming meeting.

His thoughts were suddenly dashed by a distant yelp of pain. Glancing back at his retinue, he nodded and at once set forth, giving his mount’s reins a quick snap and leaning forward to guide the way. He gave little heed to the fact that they were a couple hours past Hoshido’s border already, and thus many things sat outside of his jurisdiction -  _someone needed help_. And while the prince did not consider himself overly charitable, he also was not completely  _heartless_ , damn it.

Carefully but quickly arriving on the scene, Leo wasn’t sure what to expect. Certainly, it wasn’t this: a trio of brigands - with their attire and demeanour, they could hardly be called aught else - had surrounded a boy with too-familiar white hair. Except they had scattered even before Leo and his crew came fully into sight. One of them was clutching at his belly and looked to be in not so good a condition. The others looked on, wary but slowly creeping forward anew.

“Stay back! I’m warning you!”

Kliff’s words went unwisely unheeded as the two remaining bandits advanced, slowly closing about him. With a scowl, he threw his hand over his head. A magical circle of a brilliant violet filled with runic symbols flared to life beneath him, its glare almost blinding to the unprepared. Then, out of thin air, a bunch of shard-like blades materialized and, upon the boy throwing his hand in his opponents’ direction, they flew, vicious, blood-thirsty missiles seeking victory.

And victory they achieved, most handily. His enemies downed, Kliff stood tall and, casually dusting himself off, snorted haughtily. “Warned you.”

It was as he was stooping down to pick up his backpack from one of the thugs that Leo and his retinue dear near, startled expressions worn by one and all. Leo was the quickest to master himself, however. “Impressive,” the prince noted, giving the impromptu battleground a cursory sweep. That the young mage had dealt with three all to himself was no small feat, but more than that…

“You did that with no tome. How?”

Shouldering his pack, Kliff looked over his shoulder skeptically before beginning to stalk his way down the path. “I’m fine, why thank you so much for asking.”

With a huff of annoyance and frustration both, Leo urged his horse forward until he was maintaining a pace abreast of his surly acquaintance. “My apologies, I saw what you did back there and got a bit one-track minded. The awe of new, foreign magic… You know how it is, I imagine?” The prince offered a rueful smile.

“I would prefer if you weren’t so quick to assume but… you’re not wrong,” Kliff offered, wearing a teasing smirk of his own. “Leo, was it?”

“That’s Prince Leo to you,” one of the men bringing up the rear tossed, keen on decorum right up until the moment the prince in question shot him a withering glare.  _He could well speak for himself, please and thank you_.

Looking back toward his company, Leo simply nodded. “I’m pleased you remember me. But you’re still deflecting, Kliff. I must know how you came by magic sans tome - it will keep me up at night, I swear it! From one mage to another.”

Kliff offered a sheepish laugh and shrugged. “It’s just how we do it back in Valentia. I’ve no charms to give nor tricks to share. Our magic pulls not from a book or conduit but from the self.” He shrugged, as if that was that - and by his estimation, it may as well have been.

With a dissatisfied huff, Leo leaned back in his saddle, brows furrowed and fingers pinching the bridge of his nose as he considered Kliff’s words. Not requiring a tome could prove quite the advantage over one’s enemies… Not that they were in a time of war any longer, but he could not help looking to the future. Humans were inevitably creatures of habit and, for whatever reason, that habit - if books of lore and history were of any indication - included battle and chaos.

Still, he had no cause to disbelieve his fellow mage. The scarlet-eyed youth had seemed fairly frank - if albeit a tad curt - the last they had met.

“That’s a shame, but so be it.” _For now,_  at any rate. “May I ask what brings you to Hoshido?”

It was Kliff’s turn to huff, albeit with good humour. He crossed his arms loosely over his chest. “You ask a lot of questions of me for a man sitting atop his horse. I should think, given the terrain, I would prefer to focus on my footing.”

With a groan and a resigned mutter, Leo slipped from his horse’s back and fell into step beside Kliff.  _Happy now?_  his expression seemed to ask. If he wanted to play that game, Leo had no problem challenging him. He was a prince, yes, and perhaps his station was considered above treading in the mud, but bollocks to that. He had to keep his eye on the prize, after all, and whatever individual wasn’t willing to get a little dirty for that was unworthy of victory. “Are you always like this?”

Kliff met Leo’s amused expression with a bemused chuckle of his own. “Always like what?”

Leo rolled his eyes and laughed. Kliff grinned back, all dimples in a rare moment of openness.

“So, what brings you to Hoshido?” Leo prompted then. Keeping an eye on where he was going all the while, he couldn’t help his mind wandering, if briefly, back to the cherry blossom petals gently falling about them.

“I already told you,” Kliff said. “Traveling. Honing my magic. Expanding my knowledge. Et cetera.” He shrugged.

“Ah! Standard wanderer fare, then.” Leo snorted with sharp amusement when Kliff shot him a searching look for his comment. “How do you expect to do all that if you won’t stay and chat awhile with fellow mages? Skirting opportunity is not wont to do you any favours.”

Kliff looked skyward and squinted at the sun lightly filtering through the sakura branches. “Figured I’d sort that out as I went.”

“Hm. You didn’t strike me as the sort to go without a plan.” Goading.

“Hm. I thought we talked about assumptions.” Not so much goading as prodding.

“Fair enough. Say, would-”

“-Look, I’m really not much for small talk.” And that was that.

The two fell thereafter into silence for the better part of the remainder of the walk until soon enough, a town came into view.

“Think we ought to split ways here,” Kliff said. A statement more so than a suggestion.

Leo nodded. “Sure. But, I was thinking. I will be in Hoshido’s capital over the next few days before returning home to Nohr. I should think it a shame if you did not drop by to say hello before departing. You say you’re not much for small talk but then, neither am I - but I do not consider matters concerning my studies to be merely small talk. It might be interesting to share techniques and the like.”

Upon seeing Kliff’s impassive features, Leo merely shrugged and went to mount his horse. From atop the black beast, he loomed, looked down with an unperturbed gaze of his own. “Mull it over, at least. And think about your purpose for traveling in the first place.”

Kliff shrugged again. “Yes mum. I’ll get right on that.”

But in truth, the prince had given him some food for thought.

> * * * * *

And so, some weeks later, Kliff inevitably found himself on the nohrian prince’s doorstep. Before fully parting ways, Leo had quickly penned and given him a letter, a token to be offered to the guards so that he might make his arrival known. The letter in question he now handed over, saw it couriered, and voila - someway, somehow, Kliff found himself escorted to Leo’s study, and the two got to work.

For all Kliff’s insistence that he wasn’t much for small talk, the two eventually fell into easy banter. Two equally analytical - not to mention equally pragmatic - minds, they started at first just talking about magic and their own experience with it. Occasionally they interjected with some tidbit from their past, though both were to some extent guarded, reclusive, more business than not even amongst peers.

Months passed. Years. Kliff’s visits continued. Their time together was always short but always productive. Leo trusted him enough at this point to vent if he needed to. About his role in Nohr’s future. About his siblings, at times, and how frustrating they could prove no matter how he loved them. About Hoshido and how confusing some of their customs could be, and about this one girl who kept running through his mind. About this and that. The usual things friends shared.

They were indeed friends by now, Kliff had supposed one day, and at the realization he hid behind his quiet smile. It was a nice thought. Maybe this was what he’d been looking for all along. Certainly they had both learned a great deal through their practice and research.

And yet…

Both knew before anyone said anything that this was to be the last day. For now, at least.

Standing at the edge of the study, rucksack edged onto his shoulders, Kliff glanced back at the prince sitting in the chaise longue. It was obvious he was purposefully averting his gaze. Hm. Kliff glanced away. This was harder than he’d thought it was going to be.

Anxious, he cleared his throat.

Leo looked up, lithe brows lifted in careful consideration. He maintained his silence. Then, he shifted so that he was sitting up facing Kliff. His hands knitted together and sat austerely in his lap, he waited.

“I’m leaving,” Kliff said, and felt annoyed with how he’d more or less mumbled it.  _Coward_. But as he continued, he gained strength, found his resolve. “I’m not sure when I’ll be back.” He _did_  intend to return, though. That ought to count for something, right? “I think I might go home for a bit.”

Leo shrugged, nodded. “That’s understandable.” The other had been away from home for a long time now, after all. The prince could not fathom doing the same. There was always so much to take care of, here. “Do as you must.” The ghost of a smile danced on his lips.

Neither of them were familiar with expressing overt sentimentality - and perhaps it was for the best that way. Kliff nodded and grinned. “Look for me if you ever happen to visit Valentia.”

Leo nodded. Of course. That was a given. “I will.”


End file.
